Gary Neville sends warning to Man United after Arsenal defeat

Gary Neville has his say on Man United's damaging 2-0 loss to Arsenal in the Premier League

Gary Neville has warned Manchester United that they now face a tough test in trying to break back into the top four this season following their loss to Arsenal.

The Gunners claimed a comprehensive 2-0 win over Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men at The Emirates on Sunday afternoon to become the first team to beat them in the Premier League under their interim boss.

Goals from Granit Xhaka and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang wrapped up the victory for the home side as they leapfrogged the Red Devils into fourth place in the table.

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Manchester United will now be hoping to break back into the top four before the season is out, with eight games left to play.

Former Manchester United defender Neville has also suggested that the win over Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League last week could affect things for the Red Devils.

Speaking on his Sky Sports podcast after Sunday’s defeat at The Emirates, Neville said: “I was in Paris on Tuesday night and it was euphoric and celebrated in such a way that it deserved.

“But on Thursday when I just started to look at it, I looked at the fixtures from April 9th to April 28th.

“There’s potential semi finals of the FA Cup, they play City and Chelsea, Everton away.

“Then you think about European Cup quarter finals, which could be City, could be a huge club.

“There’s a big opportunity. But there’s also a big challenge to manage that period.

“United have picked up a few injuries, [Nemanja] Matic was back [vs Arsenal] and [Anthony] Martial. But it’s all to play for.”

Asked to assess the top-four race with eight games left to play, Neville continued: “This season everything is up for grabs.

“The race for top four, in terms of the third and fourth positions has just become incredibly tight.

“I would’ve said two weeks ago, three weeks ago, it’s just one place for three. Now it’s definitely two places for four.

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“Arsenal are in it, Chelsea are in it, United are in it and Tottenham are back in it. It’s a big thing. I couldn’t call it at this moment in time.”

Manchester United will take on Wolves in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup next weekend as they seek their first piece of silverware under Solskjaer.